We all gathered in the kitchen of the Burrow, as Bill had made arrangements to use the Secure Floo to get into Gringotts without attracting any unwanted attention. Arthur, Ivan, Dave and Bill all secured some final hugs and kisses from their partners before we took the Secure Floo into Gringotts.
On arrival, we were greeted by a good number of armed goblin guards as well as some of the humans who also served as guards in Gringotts. There were a few tense moments when I was a little worried that they intended to arrest us for our earlier break-in, despite the assurances from Kingsley and Bill that the goblins had guaranteed us safe passage.
It turned out that the extra security was because of the presence of Ivan and Dave. Because when Ivan went to go with Bill and Arthur to see the Head Goblin and Dave went to follow Harry, the security details were unsure as to who they were to follow. In the end, they decided to follow Ivan, and we were able to make our way down to Harry's hereditary family vault.
The ride in the Gringotts cart was the usual ghastly affair. Although I did notice that both Harry and Dave seemed to enjoy it immensely. They were both still grinning as they exited the cart.
The Potter family vault was much further down in Gringotts than Harry's trust vault, but it was not quite as deep down as the Lestrange family vault was. None the less we were still a long way under the Gringotts entrance.
I noticed that like the Lestrange family vault this vault door required the goblin to place his whole hand on the door to get it to open. When the goblin guide opened the vault door, he stepped back and allowed us to see contents of the Potter family vault.
Harry's eyes went wide like saucers as he tried to take in the view all at once. The rest of us were in a similar state also. The sight we had before us with wasn't the one that we had been expecting.
While the vault contained a significant amount of gold and silver along with jewels as we were all expecting. Those items were outnumbered at least three to one by an army of bookcases, vast piles of books, masses of paintings and chest after chest of scrolls and other bits of parchment.
"Where do we start?" Ron asked as he looked around with a worried expression on his face.
"Well, that would depend on what you want to find?" Dave replied while he too was looking around in wonder at the piles of books.
"I'm starting to think that we should have brought Izzy along. She could index this whole place in an afternoon." Dave remarked as he continued to take in the vast number of books in the vault. "Although prizing her away from this many books might take significantly longer." He added with a chuckle.
"The same might be said for Hermione as well," Ron suggested while smiling at me. It was now that I became aware of my sense of awe at the number of books in front of me. After assessing my feelings, I had to admit (albeit grudgingly) that he was right. The library at Hogwarts might have had more books than Harry's vault did, but it would be a close race between them.
Harry entered the vault, and we all cautiously followed him. Once we were inside, the scale of what it contained was even more impressive.
I was trying to look everywhere at once, just like the rest of the group. However, I'm proud to admit I was the first one to notice a desk set against one wall of the vault. On this desk was what looked like a book keeper's ledger and above it was a shelf that contained many more of them.
Crossing the vault to the desk, I looked at the ledger that was open on it. To my surprise, I realised that it was indeed part of a catalogue of what the vault contained.
"Harry!" I called out excitedly, "You have to see this." I told him pointing to the ledger.
"What is it?" He asked as he came over to examine what I had been pointing at.
"It looks like this book here and the ones on the shelves above are a catalogue of the contents of your vault," I reported excitedly. From the look on Harry's face, my excitement was becoming infectious. "What sort of information do you want to try and find?" I asked him.
"What I'd like to find are the personal diaries of my Grandfather and Great Grandfather," Harry advised us with a wistful look on his face and a sidelong glance at Dave.
"Sounds logical," I told him, and everyone else seemed to agree with me.
"Grab the third book from the right off the shelf." Dave suggested, and we all looked at him with questions on our faces, "I'm not as good as Izzy is at using the Summary and Index spell without touching a book, but I can do it. At a reasonably close range, anyway." He explained with a crooked smile.
"I can sense in that book the names of Harry's Grandfather and Great-Grandfather along with several mentions of personal diaries." He told us, "If I can lay my hands on it I might be able to pinpoint the page that mentions them for you." He offered.
Harry quickly pulled the book down and passed it to me. While I had the book in my hands, I promptly cast the summary and index spell on it to see if I could find the information we were after. Dave must have noticed me do this as he had a chuckle and smiled at me while I was doing it.
"Did you find it?" He enquired.
"I think so." I told him confidently, "Page 37 should be the one we are after." I said as I passed the book to him.
"Agreed." He replied as he placed his hand on the book. I found myself smiling at his agreement, "Along with page 54." He added while grinning back at me.
"Remember we are after two sets of diaries." He reminded me. Ron and Harry had a chuckle at my expense while I opened the book to page 37.
As I expected there was an entry for Henry Potter that mentioned his personal diaries. It indicated Bookcase 67, Shelf G.
"Where do we find Bookcase 67?" I asked as I looked up from the book.
"On the map, of course," Ginny replied very cheerfully as she reached around Harry and pulled a map of the vault off the wall. She then held it up with a very self-satisfied look on her face for us to see it.
"There are no bookcase numbers on that map Ginny," Ron advised her with a chuckle, as Ginny quickly turned the map over to look at the front of it. She began to scan the map with a scowl on her face. While she was doing that Harry started to chuckle.
"What?" Ginny snapped at him more than a little annoyed. Harry just pointed at the wall where she got the map from. There on the wall was another map this one showing bookcases. When she saw this Ginny looked more closely at the map, she had in her hands and realised that it was for the piles of books and the various trunks in the vault.
"Well I was close, wasn't I?" She asked Harry with a dangerous tone in her voice as we all moved off to locate the bookcase in question. Harry was trying to suppress a smile as he moved to follow Ginny.
When we found the one we were after there was a pile of trunks in front of it. Harry and Dave began to move them carefully to one side so that we could safely access the bookcase behind them.
While they were moving the trunks, a curious thing happened. The two of them were placing one of them that they had just been carrying on the floor when Ron walked up to them with a piece of parchment that had fallen out of it. He never made it to them however as there was a barrier that was stopping him from going any further.
"Looks like this might be a restricted section of your vault Harry," Dave advised him while he was looking for the ward line of the barrier on the floor.
"How did you get in here then?" Harry asked Dave.
"It must have been because I was helping you with that trunk," Dave replied with a thoughtful look. "We can test that idea by getting Ron to help you with the next trunk if you like," Dave suggested as he indicated what he thought to be the line of the shield on the floor.
Harry and Ron quickly agreed to this, and they then set about moving the last of the trunks from in front of the bookcases. This time though as Ron approached the line that Dave had indicated he again stopped cold and could go no further. We all looked at Dave with our questions plain on our faces.
Dave for his part had a look of intense concentration on his face as he had his hands out trying to feel for the shield. While he was doing this, he freely crossed the line that he had indicated earlier. When this happened, Harry looked to have a wild hope in his eyes. Dave noticed this and cautioned Harry.
"Do not jump to conclusions Harry." He advised him, "We do not know what type of barrier or ward that this is, and without that information, we can't say precisely what being able to pass through it means." He explained.
"I have been able to pass through blood wards not set for me before." He told Harry in a serious tone of voice, "Depending on how they have been set, they either allow only one particular family through or keep everyone else out."
"Being 'broken' I'm sometimes 'read' by those wards as being a third category, and depending on the design of the wards I'm either allowed through or excluded." He explained while observing Harry's face carefully.
Harry reluctantly acknowledged this fact, but the look of disappointment on his face was evident.
"If you would like to know more about this ward/barrier I would suggest that you get Bill to examine it." He suggested, "There is an odd feeling about it. It also feels extremely faint to me, so I'm unable to get a good understanding of it. Without a spending a good amount of time on it that is."
"I certainly will ask him to take a look." Harry agreed with Dave.
We all then went to the bookcase and located Shelf G. The entire shelf and the ones below it looked to be dedicated to the personal diaries of Henry Potter.
"We know that the arrest of Douglas occurred in 1928." I reminded them, "So, should we grab the diaries that cover 1927, 1928 and 1929?" I suggested.
"That would give us the ability to establish a baseline for Henry's style of writing. That, in turn, will make it easier to determine if there are any changes in what he wrote when we get to the time of Douglas's arrest." I explained.
"Are you sure that you haven't done this sort of work before?" Dave asked me with a sly smile.
"No, I haven't." I told him, "It's just that is what seems logical to me."
"That's a big part of what we do Hermione." Dave replied as he gave me an approving look, "We apply logic to supposedly illogical happenings and attempt to work out what has happened and why. We also try to work out what is likely to happen 'down the track' so to speak." He explained.
"I do also agree with your suggestion though." He added with a smile as we all turned to the shelves to locate the books for that time period.
It turned out that 20 books of various sizes covered the time in question. We carried them to the front of the vault and carefully placed them in a pile so that we could 'check them out' later with the goblins when we left.
Dave and Harry moved the trunks back to their original locations in case we needed to locate one of them at a later date. The others then set off to find the personal diaries of Fleamont Potter. When they turned their backs, I quickly grabbed the personal diaries for Henry Potter that Covered Dec 1905, Jan and Feb 1906. On a whim, I also selected the diary's that covered the summers of 1922 and 1923. I grabbed them as something told me that they would be crucial to the outcome of our search. Once I had the diaries, I had to move quickly to place them near the front of the vault with the other diaries and then catch up with the others.
The bookcases that held the personal diaries of Fleamont Potter were unobstructed. There were more diaries in total though. Covering the same time period, there were a total of 42 books. While the boys were neatly piling them by the door, Ginny and I were looking at the ledgers that contained the catalogue of the vault.
Ginny was absently running her hands over the books while muttering something under breath. I assumed that she was using the summary and index spell, but I was curious as to what she was searching for.
"Find anything?" I asked her.
"Not yet." She answered as she continued to work her way down the bookshelf.
"What are you searching for?" I enquired.
"Nothing in particular." She replied, "Just seeing if any of these books have any mention of a Douglas or Diagon Alley." She explained while still concentrating on the books. Before I could reply, she excitedly pulled one of the books off the shelf.
"This one mentions Diagon Alley." She exclaimed as she quickly opened the book to the appropriate page. Her excitement brought the boys over to see what she had uncovered.
"What did you find Gin?" Harry asked her.
"This book contains entries for properties that your family own in Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley," Ginny told him with a broad smile.
"Really?" Harry asked excitedly.
"Yes really." Ginny replied with her own excitement showing, "It mentions several books in the pile marked No 5 as giving more details." She told us as she made her way over to the pile mentioned.
After a quick search, Ginny located a book that she pulled out and showed to Harry. As she did so, Harry quickly whispered something into her ear. Ginny's eyes went wide for a moment, she then nodded in agreement. Giving the book to Harry, she came over to join me as the boys sat down to look through the book on Harry's properties.
Ginny approached me, and with a quick glance over her shoulder, she passed on Harry's request. "Harry wants us to see if there are any family photo albums or photos of his Grandfather and Great Grandfather in here." She told me.
"I think I can understand why" I replied as we walked back to the desk where the ledgers were. We were searching them for information on family photo albums when Ron's voice called out loudly.
"No Way." He exclaimed, "Harry you own the building that Honeydukes is in, in Hogsmeade." He said grinning with delight. That smile on his face brought a similar smile to my own. It just couldn't be helped. When I noticed Ginny's amused expression, I could only acknowledge it and continue on with our search.
"Looks like I own the building that Zonko's used to be in also," Harry reported with a chuckle as both Ron and Dave gathered around to have a look.
"Found any of the books that cover Diagon Alley?" I asked them. Mainly in an attempt to keep them working, I will admit.
"Not yet," Harry replied as he pulled the next book indicated and began to cast the Summary and Index spell on it. Ron and Dave were also searching the books located in that collection that the catalogue had identified.
While the boys were searching, Ginny and I hit the mother lode. We found two magically expanded trunks which were full of photo albums covering the time period of Henry and Fleamont Potter. When we located them, we quickly searched through them and selected a couple of photo albums that looked promising.
There was one photo album that seemed to cover the significant life events of Fleamont Potter. While in the other trunk was a similar album for Henry. Several of the photos in the album for Fleamont Potter seemed to depict family gatherings, curiously in several of them, there was a person whose face was blurred out. Nothing about the person appears to have stood out in any way, however.
Towards the end of the photo album, there was another photo of a family scene where one person had their face blurred out. They appeared to be talking to a woman standing next to them who was holding a newborn in her arms. When I looked closer at the woman, my heart felt as though it had stopped for a few moments, as I was sure that I had seen her somewhere before. Quickly I called Ginny over to show her the photo as well.
When I showed her what had gotten me so excited the look on her face indicated that she shared my suspicions. Before we could discuss this in detail, however, Ron's and then Harry's voice rang out in the vault.
"Harry, you own the building where Fred and George have their shop," Ron reported with his voice showing how amusing he found that fact to be.
"WHAT?" Harry asked with his own amusement clear for all to hear. After some chuckles between the boys about increasing George's rent, Harry's voice again rang out.
"I own the building where Sugarplum's Sweets, is located." He exclaimed with palpable excitement.
This name rang clearly with us all, as it was the building where Douglas had lived while he was working with Mr Ollivanders father. Ginny and I very quickly found ourselves back with the boys. We were all now searching for the rental records of that building for the time period that Douglas had been living there.
"I found them," I called out to the others excitedly. They quickly gathered around me. "These records are for the year 1926/27/28," I told them.
"My thoughts were, that even if Douglas's name was blurred out on the page, we should still see Fanny's name appear on the tenant list," I explained.
"Sounds logical to me," Dave replied with an encouraging smile.
As we knew from the records provided by Ollivander the apartment number that Douglas lived in, our attention was focused on the 4th floor of the building.
"Here's a name that is blurred out." I pointed out excitedly.
"What is the date of that record?" Dave asked with a focused look on his face.
"This page is for January 1927," I told him.
"He got married in February, didn't he?" Ginny asked Dave.
"Correct." Was the reply.
Flipping through the pages of the book, we came to the entry for February of that year. There was still only the single blurred name for the apartment that we suspected to be Douglas's. Continuing onto the records for March we found a second name added to that apartment. It was a 'Fanny S' with the surname blurred out.
All eyes turned to Dave, and the look of wonder and relief on his face was a joyous sight. You couldn't see it and not smile. Dave tore his eyes from the page in the book and looked at us all with genuine warmth and affection.
"Thank you." He said simply, "Thank you for helping find this." He said with tears in his eyes.
"You're welcome," Harry replied as he placed his hand on Dave's shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze. Dave smiled by way of reply, and it really did say all that needed to be said.
"May I?" He asked as he indicated the book I was holding.
"Certainly," I told him as I passed the book over to him.
Dave looked very carefully at each page, but he was also flicking through them rather quickly. He got to the entry for December 1927 and seemed to be a little upset when he didn't see what he was looking for. When he located the record for January 1928, however, the smile was back on his face. As there next to the blurred name of Douglas and Fanny's name was an entry for a 'Henry William' with the surname also blurred out, along with a notation of 'infant' next to it.
For several moments Dave only stared at the entry. He then looked up at us and spoke.
"That must be how they knew him." He stated, "The Potter's were his landlords." Before any of us could reply Dave was quickly searching through the other entries in the book. The last one had a notation against it that seemed to indicate that some correspondence was being undertaken between Douglas and the Potter's.
Looking at the notation, it gave us a clue as to where to look for the letters. When the box indicated was located, we all watched as Harry opened it. Inside the letters seemed to have been arranged by the building that they related to.
When the packet of letters for Douglas's building was located, Harry's hands were almost trembling with excitement.
Harry extracted the letters and laid them out so that we could all read them. The letters looked to be very polite and cordial ones between Douglas and the Potter's agent and the Potter's themselves. While Douglas's name and family name were blurred out, we could see enough references to Fanny and little Henry William to know that they were indeed the correct ones.
The content of the letters looked to be the desire of Douglas and his family to move into a larger apartment, now that they had little Henry in their lives. The Potter's looked to be in full agreement that a larger apartment would be a good idea, but sadly they didn't have any larger apartments currently available. There was an interesting section in one of the letters that Harry pointed out to us all.
"Listen to this." Harry requested as he began to read aloud;
"While we do not currently have any suitable apartments available for your requirements, we would be only too happy to recommend you to our fellow landlords. As you are a long-standing tenant of ours, who is very highly regarded by not only your fellow tenants, building superintendent and agent, but also by ourselves."
"A wonderful family such as yours should have accommodations that suit your needs. Therefore, if you desire, we would be only too pleased to make such introductions as are necessary and furnish any required references as well."
"On a personal note, we all would like to thank you, your wonderful wife Fanny and little Henry for attending my eldest son's family only birthday recently. It pleased us all a great deal to see you all there."
"It is signed by, Henry Potter," Harry reported with an excited look on his face. "So not only did they know each other in a business sense. They were also close enough to be invited to a family only birthday party."
"That would explain the photo," Ginny remarked thoughtfully, as all the boys quickly focused their attention on her.
"What photo?" Harry asked.
"This one," I told him as I retrieved the photo we found earlier. The boys eagerly gathered around to look at the photo. "That is Fanny, isn't it?" I asked them.
"I would be willing to bet that it is," Dave replied while he was staring at the photo. "The question is though, why is it my Grandfather that his face blurred in this photo?" Dave asked with a look of puzzlement.
"In all the other photos, I have seen of him, his face is not obscured. Only those of his family are." Dave explained.
"I hadn't thought of that," I told Dave truthfully. What would cause that to occur? I really needed to learn more about the casting out of a person from their family, and how it worked.
A familiar voice calling to us from the door interrupted my thoughts.
"How did your searching go?" Bill asked with amusement as he watched us from the door of the vault. Looking over we could see Arthur, Ivan and a few Goblins also watching us from the door as well. Arthur and Ivan seemed to be sharing Bill's amusement. The Goblins, however, looked to be watching us as one might view a dangerous animal. I was willing to bet that all the extra guards we saw earlier were nearby just out of sight.
"Quite well actually." Harry replied excitedly, "How did your searching go?" He asked.
"We had some good luck also." Ivan replied, "We have found some records that confirmed what the girls and Brendan were able to dig up last night. Regarding Fanny's full name, the names of her parents and siblings. Along with the names on the muggle baptism record for the godparents." He explained.
"The goblins are also doing some extra searching for us as well." He advised us, "But their records also look to be affected by the casting out of my father. So it is likely to take some time."
"The new information we found is that the godparents listed on my father's 'magical' baptism have the godfather's name blurred out. But the godmother's name was Ève Laflèche."
"That is a new name to us, and we will have to do some looking into it." Ivan Explained, "It is too early to jump to conclusions just now, but it does seem to hint at a French connection somewhere in my father's life here in the UK."
"We also found another reference to my father's will, being apparently secured in his family's vault. But still no information on what vault that might be." He explained.
"Most excitingly we now have the date of the Muggle Marriage of my father and Fanny." Ivan reported with a broad grin, "We also know the exact location of both the Muggle and magical weddings." He added excitedly.
"Are you sure?" Dave asked with a real hunger in his eyes.
"Extremely," Ivan replied smiling at Dave.
"Where was the magical wedding held?" Dave asked with hunger showing in his eyes.
"The family church in Godric's Hollow," Ivan told us. Harry's face lit up at this news, and even I felt a tingle run through my spine. We knew that Harry's parents were buried in that church and that a large number of Potter's were also mentioned on rolls inside the church. Remembering Dave's earlier comments about getting carried away, I also admitted to myself that there were a good number of other wizarding families that have called Godric's Hollow home over the centuries as well. Bill's voice pulled me from my thoughts.
"Before we get too excited at comparing notes on today's finds, perhaps we should introduce Harry, Hermione, Ron, Ginny and Dave to our very busy hosts?" Bill suggested looking at everyone and the pile of books and photo albums that were not near the door of the vault.
"Yes. Yes, we should Bill." Ivan replied looking a little shamefaced at forgetting the presence of the Gringotts goblins who were waiting patiently behind him. "Sorry about that." He apologised to the Head Goblin. The Head Goblin quickly accepted the apology and turned his attention to me, Ron and Harry.
Cautiously the two groups approached each other. Harry, Ron and I all naturally drew to each other as we approached the Gringotts Head Goblin. I'm not sure what we were expecting as we walked towards him, but he looked like he fully expected us to draw our wands on him at any moment.
Ginny and Dave were left behind as we made our way to the door of the vault. Although I could feel Dave's eyes on us all throughout the exchange. I also noticed Ginny positioning herself to be closer to Dave, most likely to avoid the stars of the various goblins who were present.
"Harry, Ron and Hermione, I would like to introduce you to the Gringotts Head Goblin," Bill stated as he began the introductions a little nervously.
"Head Goblin…" Bill said before he was cut off.
"I'm aware of who these three are, Mr Weasley." The Head Goblin stated as he regarded us with cold dead eyes and an even colder expression.
"They are I believe, the only living beings to ever successfully break into Gringotts and steal something that was not rightfully theirs." He snapped as a Judge might to a condemned prisoner. "The wizarding Ministry has gone to great lengths to encourage us to 'forgive' your thievery. However, you can rest assured that the goblins of Gringotts will NEVER forget it." He stated firmly.
"I do believe that we will never ever feel completely comfortable with any of you being in our bank ever again." He advised us. Arthur and Bill looked to have been taken entirely by surprise by these statements, and they were looking for a reply when Harry stepped forward and addressed the Head Goblin.
"On behalf of my friends, I would like to personally apologise unreservedly to you and all the members of your staff for our regrettable actions," Harry told him in a calm voice. "I would like you to know that we didn't do what we did lightly, or for any personal gain."
"What we did was necessary, to enable the ultimate defeat of Tom Riddle Jnr." Harry explained, "I'm sure that the goblins are happier now that he is gone for good?" Harry inquired.
"A likely story, Mr Potter." The Head Goblin snapped. Harry looked to be unconcerned at this reply. He almost looked like it was the one he had been expecting and maybe even hoping for strangely.
"Did the Ministry advise you of what we took and why?" Harry asked the Head Goblin.
"They did not." The Head Goblin replied stiffly, "They deemed us unworthy of knowing that information." He growled.
"Would you like me to tell you that information?" Harry offered. "I must request, however, that all who are present to hear this information be sworn to secrecy and promise to never repeat it. As the Ministry wishes to keep it very tightly held. The reason for which will become obvious when I tell you about it." Harry explained.
"By telling you this information I'm placing a great deal of trust in you and your staff," Harry advised him calmly, but the steel behind that statement could not be ignored. "Do you agree to those terms?" He asked.
This offer had an extraordinary effect on the Head Goblin. His stance at once became less stiff and hostile and far more relaxed. His face assumed an expression of curiosity and eagerness.
"Yes. Yes, I do." He replied to Harry in a very different tone of voice. It was almost polite (by goblin standards). "My staff will all agree to this also." He advised Harry with a quick look at the group of people who were gathered with him.
"Very well." Harry replied, "I will accept your word."
That simple statement from Harry appeared to have a significant positive effect on the Head Goblin as well as those members of his staff that we could see. Bill also was indicating his approval of Harry's actions and choice of words.
"The item that we took from the Lestrange family vault was the cup of Helga Hufflepuff," Harry told him. All the goblins reacted strongly to this news.
"Many years before Tom Riddle Jnr had killed Hepzibah Smith and framed her house elf for her murder. This was done solely so that he could steal this cup and another item from her as he greatly desired them."
"He stole it?" The head Goblin asked with undisguised curiosity, "Why?"
"He stole it as he desired to make another Horcrux to house a fragment of his soul," Harry explained to the horror of the goblins and their human guards.
"We had a Horcrux under our care?" The Head Goblin hissed angrily in disbelief.
"You did indeed." Harry replied, "Tom Riddle Jnr used the murder of Hepzibah Smith to split his soul yet again so that a fragment of it could be placed into Hufflepuffs cup."
"The reason why he chose her cup is that he deemed only objects of great historical importance to be worthy of housing his soul."
"What did you do with the cup?" The Head Goblin asked Harry.
"We destroyed it," I told him.
"We?" The Head Goblin asked as he regarded me with his cold looking eyes. Curiously his face didn't seem to contain the open animosity that was on display before.
"Or you?" The Head Goblin enquired of me.
"Yes, I destroyed it," I told him. As I said this, I reached into my beaded bag and retrieved the remains of Hufflepuffs cup and handed it to him. "As you can see for yourself, it has been magically destroyed beyond repair."
The Head Goblin took the cup from my hands and carefully examined it for several long moments. Eventually and somewhat surprisingly he handed it back to me.
"It seems that you are indeed telling the truth, Mr Potter." The Head Goblin remarked as he closely regarded Harry for a few moments. "In our dealings with wizards, we have found that to be a scarce thing. But then, from all reports, you are indeed an extraordinary and rare wizard, Mr Potter." The Head Goblin replied cryptically.
"I do believe that I will accept your apology, Mr Potter." The Head Goblin stated, "On your behalf and that of your friends also."
"But I feel I must warn you also. Our defences have been significantly increased since your incident." He advised us, "So you will not be so lucky next time." He cautioned the three of us.
"Thank you." Harry replied calmly, "I can assure you that I have no intention of EVER doing anything like that ever again." Harry explained.
"That would be best." The Head Goblin replied as he looked at both Ron and me also. We indicated our agreement with Harry and the Head Goblin also seemed to accept this as well.
Looking much more relieved than he was before Bill continued on with his interrupted introductions. He introduced Ginny to the Head Goblin. However, the Head Goblin almost ignored her completely as his attention had moved on to Dave. Ginny looked to be very happy at being dismissed so quickly. Because as she told me later the Head Goblin kind of 'creeped her out' and she was glad to escape his attention.
"Head Goblin, I would like to introduce Auror David Webb of the Australasian Auror service." Bill said as he indicated Dave who was leaning against the vault door watching with open curiosity, "He is the son of Minister Webb and my cousin." Bill explained. As he was introduced, Dave stopped leaning against the wall of Harry's vault and stood up. He inclined his head in polite greeting to the Head Goblin.
"Your cousin?" The Head Goblin asked Bill. "This wasn't mentioned in the report I was given." He snapped at one of his underlings who now looked very uncomfortable.
"It was a recent discovery," Dave explained in his professional tone of voice. "I'm sure that you're aware that my mother was thrown out by her family when they thought that she was a squib?" Dave enquired. The Head Goblin indicated that he did.
"On Thursday of last week when my mother and Molly Weasley met for the first time it was discovered that they were actually sisters." Dave explained, "It was quite a shock for both of them, as they hadn't known about each other up until that point. They have however quickly warmed to the situation, and are now doing their best to make up for lost time."
"I see." The Head Goblin replied thoughtfully. "It can be pleasing to reconnect with family." He said watching Dave very closely.
"Yes, it can be," Dave agreed, he continued to observe the Head Goblin while keeping a neutral posture.
"I must admit Auror Webb that I was extremely reluctant to allow you to visit here today." He advised Dave. Ivan and Bill reacted to this news with disappointment and traces of anger, they held their tongues however and didn't reply. Dave, however, continued to calmly observe the Head Goblin.
"Bill Weasley was convinced that you posed no threat to Gringotts. He also vouched for you, that you would cause no 'issues' for us during your visit." He explained. I saw Dave flash a grateful smile to Bill who looked slightly embarrassed by this revelation. "He also suggested that I should contact our offices in Australia to confirm his confidence in you. Along with getting some factual information on you and your family."
"I followed his advice and received a full report on you and your family from them." He advised Dave. "You might be interested to know that while they regard you as one of the most significant dangers to Gringotts. They also regard you and your family amongst our biggest and most important customers." He reported. Dave bowed his head slightly to the Head Goblin at this compliment, but he didn't say anything. The rest of us were more than a little surprised at this information. After a few moments, the Head Goblin continued on.
"In their report, they provided a complete breakdown on all of your rather interesting abilities." He stated as he watched Dave very intently, "Or as I suspect, the ones they know about at least." He added. Once more Dave was silent and merely watched the Head Goblin.
"The report also covered the tests that they put you through, to discern if you had indeed stolen any of our secrets of metal work. Along with the demonstrations that you had given to them as well." He said still watching Dave for any type of reaction. "I must confess it was fascinating reading." The Head Goblin added as his eyes seemed to come alive at his memory of the report.
Looking around at the others who were present I'm sure that we were all having the same thoughts, that we would all like to be able to read THAT report. Dave, however, was still just calmly watching the Head Goblin with no sign of any outward reaction.
"I would like to know if you would consent to a demonstration of your unique abilities for me." The Head Goblin enquired. This request caused a stir of excitement not only from those of us in the vault. But also from the goblins who were outside in the tunnel.
Dave, however, didn't react past an inclination of his head, to indicate his acceptance of the request. He then closed his eyes for a brief moment. When he did this Bill, and the goblins both looked a little surprised for a moment. Then Dave opened his eyes and smiled at the Head Goblin. This reaction wasn't expected by the Head Goblin, but it did arouse his curiosity.
"Do Gringotts employees get bonuses for the treasures that they discover?" Dave asked the Head Goblin, with a sly sort of look on his face.
"They do indeed." The Head Goblin replied. His expression indicated that he had already caught on to what Dave was in the process of doing. He seemed only too happy to follow along and watch as it unfolded.
Dave smiled at this answer and calmly walked over to Bill. He whispered something into Bill's ear. This caused Bill to look very shocked and even slightly worried at what Dave had said to him.
The Head Goblin was openly smiling at what he had just witnessed. He moved to stand in front of Bill and caught his attention.
"Speak Bill Weasley, and fear not for your words." The Head Goblin intoned formally. Bill looked (if possible) even more startled at this development. Clearing his suddenly dry throat, Bill spoke up.
"I believe that if we tunnelled into the wall opposite this vault door, we would find something to our benefit." He advised The Head Goblin.
"Would we indeed?" The Head Goblin asked with a look of disbelief and curiosity. "How far would we need to tunnel?" He asked Bill.
Bill cast a slightly nervous glance at Dave, who merely smiled and nodded in return. "15 meters," Bill told the Head Goblin in an apprehensive voice.
The Head Goblin inclined his head to Bill and with surprising agility jumped across the tunnel to land on the far side. He positioned himself directly opposite the vault door and turned to look at Bill.
"15 meters directly into the wall from this point?" He asked Bill.
"Yes," Bill replied after a nervous glance at Dave (who had only smiled in return).
Acknowledging Bill's answer, The Head Goblin placed his hands on the wall of the tunnel and began to speak rapidly in Gobbledegook. After a few minutes, The Head Goblin stepped to one side and watched as the section of wall he had just been standing in front of turned into sand and flowed into the tunnel. The flow of sand disappeared over the edge of the rock walkway, between it and the track for the carts.
When the flow of sand had ended the goblins quickly cast some charms to allow everyone to cross to the other side of the tunnel. We all eagerly followed Bill, Dave and the assembled Goblins to meet up with the Head Goblin and follow him into the newly made tunnel.
As we approached the end of the tunnel, we could clearly see something in the rock. Both Bill and The Head Goblin seemed to recognise what it was, and they seemed to be quite excited about it as well. When the Head Goblin reached the end of the tunnel, he again placed his hands on the rock at various points and once more spoke rapidly in Gobbledegook.
Once more the rock turned to sand and flowed out of the tunnel. This time however only a small amount was removed, as the Head Goblin was merely clearing it out of the way to uncover more of what we had seen earlier.
When he stepped back, we could see running from one side of the tunnel to the other were several veins of gold. They looked to be as thick as a broom handle, but in places, they were almost as thick as a man's leg.
"I thank you for this information Bill." The Head Goblin said to Bill in a pleased tone of voice. "I'll personally ensure that you receive the usual bonus for this find." He advised him.
"Thank you," Bill said inclining his head in acknowledgement.
"Do you know how far this vein runs?" He asked Bill.
Looking slightly alarmed Bill turned to Dave and had a quick whispered conversation. While this was going on the Head Goblin had politely turned his back and was regarding the gold before him.
Bill cleared his throat again briefly to gain the attention of the Head Goblin. "It goes up for another 200m" Bill informed the Head Goblin, "It also continues on down at the angle shown for just over a mile." He added.
The Head Goblin's eyes widened at this news, and for a brief moment, he had a look of excitement and hunger on his face. The expression quickly disappeared, however. It changed to one that almost looked like he was impressed with the find.
"Thank you for bringing this to my attention." He said to both Bill and Dave. Both of them acknowledged the compliment. Dave placed his hand on the vein of gold, and his face then had a blank look for a moment, after which he again whispered in Bill's ear. Bill listened and then again addressed the Head Goblin.
"Below the lower end of this vein is a layer of exceptionally tough granite." Bill reported, "Underneath that layer of granite is an underground river. So, care should be taken not to cause any unnecessary damage to it." He advised.
"Thank you, Bill." The Head Goblin replied, "I will ensure that the appropriate steps are taken."
"I would also like to thank you for your demonstration, Auror Webb." He said formally. "It was most enlightening."
Dave smiled as he acknowledged the compliment. "Your welcome." He replied.
"You do indeed possess very unique skills, as was reported." The Head Goblin said regarding Dave with something close to approval, "Were these the skills you used to locate the gold that Mr Arthur Weasley deposited today?" He enquired.
"Yes, they were the main skills used." Dave replied, "Although I did have to use some different ones to bring it up closer to the surface to allow Uncle Arthur to dig it out of the ground." Dave explained.
"I see." The Head Goblin replied thoughtfully as he carefully watched Dave. "I do believe that I would like to offer you a job here at Gringotts Auror Webb. If you are interested, that is."
This caused a few startled reactions from our group. Although Bill didn't look surprised at all. If anything, he seemed slightly smug at having predicted this.
"Thank you for your very kind and generous offer." Dave replied, "It is very tempting. However, I do not wish to be the cause of Gringotts breaking International Wizarding law."
At this reply, the Head Goblin's eyes widened in surprise for a few moments.
"So, the stories are true then?" He enquired of Dave.
"Yes, they are," Dave replied almost sadly. I was itching to know what stories the Head Goblin was referring to. The looks on the faces of the others distinctly showed that they were in agreement with me as well.
"Indeed?" The Head Goblin replied looking both surprised and slightly awed as well. "Well, I thank you for your candour and honesty. If the subject is ever raised with us, rest assured that the Goblins would vote for the removal of such restrictions."
This reply looked to catch Dave off guard for a moment. "I thank you for your support and vote of confidence," Dave replied warmly.
"While I cannot work for your great establishment, I do fully support friendly and mutually beneficial relations between Gringotts and both the Australian and British Ministries of Magic," Dave told the Head Goblin while casting his eyes onto his father and Arthur. The Head Goblin caught Dave's meaning loud and clear, and he smiled in agreement.
"Mutually beneficial endeavours are something that we will happily agree to." The Head Goblin replied with a slight inclination of his head to Dave, Ivan and Arthur. "We are also pleased to support the 'recent endeavours', and we believe that have already begun to bear fruit?" He enquired.
"Indeed, they have," Arthur replied. "They have already lead to the capture of some key members of the Lestrange family organisation," Arthur told him.
"That is good news." The Head Goblin replied. "Hopefully all our future endeavours are as fruitful." He stated.
"Agreed." Arthur and Ivan replied together. Dave only smiled his reply.
The Head Goblin then turned to Bill. "Mr Weasley if you have any other 'tunnelling suggestions' to make…" He said with a sidelong look to Dave, "Please feel free to do so. As long as you tell me first." He advised.
"I certainly will," Bill replied looking oddly relieved.
We then headed back to Harry's vault where the books and photo albums that we had placed near the door were collected by the goblins so that they could be 'checked out'. Splitting up into carts, we began our ride back up to the surface.
On arrival in the lobby, we were met by an official-looking goblin who handed a selection of documents to the Head Goblin. After a quick glance at the papers, The Head Goblin passed them to Ivan.
"We have located the vault into which your father's wages were paid, based on the account number you provided." He advised Ivan.
"That is excellent news," Ivan replied excitedly. "Can you tell me which vault it is?"
"Certainly." The Head Goblin replied as he quickly glanced at the parchment in his hands, "It was vault 687." He answered. As he did so, Harry looked like he might explode. Arthur, Bill, Ginny and Ron also appeared to be extremely excited. I have to admit that my excitement was also rising.
"That's my parent's personal vault," Harry exclaimed as his excitement got the better of him.
"Your parent's vault?" Ivan asked looking very startled. "Are you sure?" He enquired.
"Yes." Harry, Arthur, Bill, Ron, Ginny and I all answered together. This seemed to rattle Ivan and Dave both. They were both looking very wild-eyed and shocked just now.
"Excuse me." Harry asked the Head Goblin, "Has Vault 687 always been in the Potter family?" He asked him.
"No." The Head Goblin answered. This answer took the wind right out of Harry's sails and brought the rest of us down to earth with a thud also.
"Vault 687, is not a hereditary vault. So its ownership changes from time to time." He explained to Harry. "The Potter family are merely the latest custodians of it." He advised.
"I see." A very dejected Harry replied. "Do you know how long my family have had ownership of that vault?" He asked.
"Before your father, we cannot say just now." The Head Goblin replied, "Our records look to have been affected magically somehow. We are endeavouring to confirm that information for you all, however." He told us.
"Do you know what happened to the contents of Vault 687, after my father's conviction?" Ivan asked while watching the Head Goblin closely.
"We know that it was transferred to another vault within Gringotts." The Head Goblin replied, "However, at this time we cannot say which one, as that information also looks to have been affected magically."
"I see." Ivan replied with his disappointment clear, "Was it taken by the Ministry of the day?" He asked.
"It wasn't." The Head Goblin replied quite confidently. Seeing the questioning looks that were directed at him, he explained further. "The destination of the contents of the vault isn't listed, but the details of the Goblins who performed the transfer of the contents is still shown." He said as he indicated the stack of parchment in Ivan's hands.
"I can confidently say Minister, that your father's family must be amongst the oldest Wizarding families in Briton. As the team of goblins listed only looked after the vaults for the very oldest of wizarding families. Both hereditary vaults and personal ones as well." He advised.
"Another interesting fact is that for the number of team members listed to have been involved, it must have been a significant transaction." He explained.
"Well, that is some fascinating news," Ivan remarked thoughtfully. "Anything else that you can find out about the vault or the transaction that occurred would be very gratefully received." He advised the Head Goblin.
"We will endeavour to do all that we can to locate the full story for you Minister." The Head Goblin replied.
That 'full story' was to prove to be very enlightening, and we were all eager to find it out.
"Thank you." Ivan and Harry replied at almost the same time.
"There is also a character reference in that collection of parchment that I think you might like to see." The Head Goblin advised Ivan.
Hearing this Ivan quickly located the document in question and read through it. The expression on his face told us of its contents long before his voice did, however.
Clearing his throat, Ivan read from the document:
"I have known him, and his family since the time of his birth. His family are a credit to the wizarding world, and he has made his parents justifiably proud of him."
"It is signed by Henry Potter," Ivan said with a touch of sadness as he returned the document to the others.
The last glimmers of hope died in Harry's eyes. Ivan and Dave also looked like they were reliving an all too familiar form of heartache as well.
The goblins had also picked up on this change in the mood, and they took their leave of our group politely and returned to their other tasks. They very quickly and efficiently checked out the items we had removed from Harry's family vault. These were placed into a magically expanded Gringotts bag. I then put that bag into my own beaded bag.
Our group made our way to the door of Gringotts for a quick trip into Diagon Alley, as Ivan wished to visit Mr Ollivander if he was able to do so.
As I watched Harry and Dave lead the way to the front door, they looked to have lost a great deal of their previous energy and enthusiasm. Even Ron seemed to be feeling down.
Glancing at Bill, I could see him watching the boys with a concerned look on his face. Ginny also looked to be mirroring Bill's concerns.
